A Series of Firsts
by RaigeRoller
Summary: This is a collection of short stories written for a Leverageland Challenge about first time experiences (Such as first date, etc) with Eliot's daughter and the team.
1. First Meeting

Nate and Sophie entered McRory's bar, wrapped up in each others arms and oblivious to the world. Parker followed, caught between listening to the sickening sweet nothings being whispered ahead and the argument behind her about their last job at that card company. She was the first one to take notice that something wasn't right, the only one to take notice actually. Hardison and Eliot came to a crashing halt as Parker abruptly stopped walking.

"Parker!" Eliot snapped, catching himself and Hardison before they fell. "Come on!"

"The stork came." Parker said, not moving.

Hardison looked at her like she'd lost her mind. "Woman, what the hell..."

"The stork came!" Parker looked over at him and pointed to a table in the middle of the room. Everyone followed Parker's finger, taking in the sight before them. On the table sat a long oval basket, with a handle on each side, and a yellow blanket inside that seemed to move on its own every so often.

"Guys," Nate said. "why is there a baby in the bar?"

The team crowded around the table and looked. A large pair of honey colored eyes stared back at them. Two tiny fists fought the air and legs kicked out as a toothless grin flashed briefly. All at once, the tiny face scrunched together and the toothless grin became a screeching cry.

"Okay, let's take this upstairs. Eliot, make sure someone isn't still here." Nate looked around before turning on his heel and heading upstairs. "And guys...don't forget the baby."

As Eliot headed off, the three remaning people looked at each other.

Hardison looked at Sophie. "You take it."

"No." Sophie shook her head. "You take it."

"Me? No way." Hardison responded.

Parker rolled her eyes as the two kept going back and forth. As the baby's cries grew louder, she stepped forward and picked the baby up. "I'll take the baby."

"Parker, I don't think..." Any caution Sophie might have said was thrown to the wind as Parker walked away with the baby held out in front of her. She followed closely behind, leaving Hardison to grab the basket and bag. "Be careful now, Parker. Don't drop it."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Nate's Loft

"Why won't it stop?" Sophie asked as Parker stood there with the baby, still dangling out in front of her. Screeching cries echoed off the walls as tears coursed their way down the red puffy cheeks of the baby in Parker's arms. "Parker, make it stop!"

Parker looked over at Sophie, her eyes wide. "I'm trying!"

Nate looked up and shook his head. "Hold the baby closer, Parker."

Parker brought the baby in a bit closer. Nate motioned for her to go even closer, continuing to do so until the baby was nestled against her chest.

"Now sway side to side and gently rub its back." he said.

Parker followed Nate's directions and within moments the crying turned to sniffles to nothing. After a few moments of blessed silence, Parker looked down and smiled excitedly.

"Look!" she exclaimed as she stopped moving. "It's sleeping!"

"Parker, don't yell. You'll..." Nate's words were drowned out by a sudden ear piercing wail, "wake the baby."

Parker immediately began moving back and forth again, rubbing the baby's back in an awkward yet gentle motion. Once again, the cries were reduced to nothing and the baby fell back asleep within minutes.

"Who would leave their baby in a bar, Nate?" Sophie asked.

"I don't know." Nate said.

Eliot came in from outside, shutting the door quietly as a bunch of hushing sounds came his way. "I didn't find anything, Nate. Whoever dropped it off is long gone."

"What now, Nate?" Sophie asked. "We have to call the police. This is a baby we're talking about."

"It will go into the system." Parker said quietly. "Can't we keep it?"

Eliot frowned at the thief. "That's a baby, Parker, not a pet."

"Eliot's right, Parker." Sophie said. "That's someone's child. They are going to want it back eventually." She turned to look at Nate. "We need to call the police."

"Call Banano." Nate told Eliot. "Have him check for any missing persons reports for babies or women who have recently had babies. Let's see if we can't find the parents."

"We don't need to." Hardison interrupted as he looked up from the table.

"What do you mean we don't need to, Hardison?" Eliot snapped. "It's a baby."

"According to this, it's your baby." Hardison held up a birth certificate.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The birth certificate had revealed a lot of information about the baby. The baby was a little girl, born prematurely at Boston General in the wee hours of the morning on May 6th, making the baby just over three months old. Her name was Mackenzie Leanne Spencer. Her father was listed as Eliot Spencer and the mother as Gail Masoni.

"Gail?" Hardison asked. "As in Nurse Gail?"

"Isn't that the one who patched you up after the carnival?" Parker asked as she set the baby back in its basket. She sighed in relief as the baby stirred, but stayed asleep.

"Yeah." Eliot shut his eyes and sank into a chair at the table.

"What are you gonna do?" Hardison asked.

"What do you mean, what's he gonna do?" Parker asked. "He's going to keep her, of course. It's his daughter."

"Parker, he can't keep her. For one, we don't even know that she's actually his and two, he's a hitter. He doesn't exactly lead a safe life." Sophie said.

As Parker and Sophie started argue, Nate cleared his throat. "He doesn't have to decide that just yet. Right now, we have more pressing things to do. Parker,Hardison, track the mother down and find out where she's at. The rest of us are going shopping."

As everyone started to get up, Nate stopped Eliot. "Not you. Your kid, you stay."

Eliot looked horrified. " But... I don't know how to take care of her!"

Nate looked at the baby, then back at Eliot. "If she wakes up, hold her."

Before Eliot could reply, the others left and he was alone with the baby. Eliot sat on the couch, watching the baby intently. He didn't realize he was holding his breath until a knock sounded on the door 20 minutes later and Sophie poked her head around. The knock woke the baby up and immediately Sophie dropped the bag of supplies off. She told him to test the formula on his arm before giving it to the kid and then left before Eliot could convince her to stay and help out. It wasn't that she hated kids. She didn't. She liked them very much. She just didn't know anything about them and she didn't want to do anything wrong, especially with Eliot's kid.

Eliot ran out the door after Sophie, shouting at her to come back, but she didn't. He went back inside, slamming the door behind him, causing the normal cry of a baby turn into a screeching sob with a shaky pitch. He slowly approached the basket, peering over the top of it as if Mackenzie would reach out and bite him if he got too close. Her tiny fists were knotted up and her entire body was tense and shaking.

"What do I do? What do I do?" He said as he began to pace. "Hold her. Nate said hold her."

Eliot went back to the basket and picked the baby up, holding the baby close to his chest as he'd seen Parker do earlier. Almost immediately, his nose crinkled. What was that awful smell? Was that... it couldn't be! Eliot lifted the baby higher. Yep, it was.

Eliot looked around for the bag of supplies that Sophie dropped off. In it, he found formula, bottles, pacifiers, wipes, and diapers. Grabbing the wipes and diaper, he laid a kitchen towel on the couch and knelt in front of it. He placed the baby on the towel and undid the sleeper. He studied the diaper, memorizing how it was fastened, before unfastening it.

"Ugh... that's just nasty." Eliot said as he cleaned the baby.

Despite having studied the diaper fastening, it took Eliot five tries to get the diaper on without breaking the fastening tabs. When he was done, he was surrounded by shreds of diaper. After finally putting the diaper on, he buttoned the sleeper and went to pick the baby up. He stopped midway as a small smile lit the baby's face. He couldn't help but be taken in by the chubby cheeks and gurgling noises. "You really are cute, aren't you?"

Picking Mackenzie up, he set her back in the basket and threw the used diaper away.

"Seriously, how can something so cute make something so nasty?" he muttered.

He sat back down in front of the basket, watching the baby inside for a good 10 minutes. He watched the bubbles around her mouth as she spoke to him and the way her hands and feet waived as if telling a story. He couldn't help but smile. Damn, but he made cute babies.

At the 10 minute mark, Mackenzie decided that watch time was over. Her nose crinkled and her lips formed a pout as tears began to leak from her eyes. Another wave of cries filled the air. Immediately, Eliot lifted the baby and sniffed. He looked at her confused. She didn't need to be changed.

"Maybe you just want to be held." he said, speaking softly to her. He picked her up, cradling her in his arms and walked around, but she continued to cry. He tried several different positions, but it didn't matter how he held her, she just continued to cry. He went over to the bag that Sophie had dropped off and looked inside.

"Are you hungry?" He asked her. He took the formula and the bottle, reading the directions. He bounced the baby gently as he filled the bottle with water and tried to add a scoop of formula while still holding Mackenzie. When he got close, Mackenzie's arm and leg shot out. The bottle dropped and the powder flew. By the time that Eliot was able to get the formula into the bottle, there was a large puddle of water on the floor and he was covered in formula.

He shook the bottle and put it in a pan of water to warm. After a couple minutes, he tested it out on his arm and found it cold. He did this four more times before it was warm enough to serve. Flicking off the stove, he dropped a kitchen towel on the puddle of water and then sat down on the couch. He tucked the baby into the crook of his arm and placed the bottle to her lips. When Mackenzie was done eating, he picked her up and laid her on his chest slightly over his shoulder to burp her. He'd seen a video on TV where a mother did this after feeding to get the baby to burp. He figured if a mom does it, he should to. He was rewarded with a couple large burps and a bit of spit up down the back of his shirt.

When Mackenzie was done, Eliot laid her back in the basket for a brief second while he shed his soiled shirt. Before he had a chance to change into one of Nate's, she started to cry. He picked her up and held her close to his chest. He put one arm under her butt and patted her back with the other. He walked around the room as she continued to cry. Almost by accident, he started to hum. As he hummed, the baby's cries grew softer and softer. When he stopped, they started again, so he went right back to humming and eventually singing. After a little while, he laid down on the couch, propping himself up against the pillows. Mackenzie sighed and nestled further into his neck. Eventually, her eyes closed and she fell asleep. Shortly thereafter, Eliot's own eyes closed and this is how the team found them two hours later.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxx

Nate walked in the door following by Sophie, Hardison, and Parker.

"Aw, how cute." Sophie said taking in the site of father and daughter.

"Kodak moment." Hardison said, snapping a picture.

"Hardison.. I will hurt you." Eliot grumbled, as he slowly opened his eyes. He slowly straightened and stood, keeping a firm but gentle grip on Mackenzie. He placed her back in the basket to sleep and joined the team at the table.

No one spoke for a couple of minutes. Finally, Eliot looked at them. "I want her."

"Eliot..." Sophie didn't know what to say, but she wasn't sure this was the smartest thing to do.

"I know, Sophie." Eliot said. "It's a dangerous life, but I can protect her. It's what I do."

"Does this mean you're leaving?" Parker asked. "I don't want you to leave. I don't want either of you to leave."

Eliot took a deep breath and shrugged. "That's up to you guys. I want to stay. I want you all to be a part of her life, but I understand if you don't want to..." He paused and looked over at Nate. "or you can't."

Eliot rose and took a few steps over to the kitchen counter. "If you think it's too dangerous and you'd rather I leave, I can give you some recommendations for hitters to replace me." He turned back to them and looked at each of them. " Either way, she's my kid, and I am not giving her up."

They sat in silence for a few seconds while everyone thought about what he'd said. Parker was the first to speak.

"Well, I want you both to stay." she said. "I already said that. We can make it work and I bet Maggie would maybe watch her if we have a job."

Eliot nodded, whispering. "Thanks, Parker."

"We're the best, man. We can make it work." Hardison said.

Eliot nodded at him and leaned forward as the two did their "bromance" handshake. He then looked over at Sophie. Sophie was quiet for a couple of minutes and then she sighed.

"Listen, Eliot, I don't know anything about kids or how to take care of them." she said softly. "I just know that we're supposed to keep them safe and love them. So, that's what I'll do. I'll help you keep her safe and I will love her, but I swear Eliot, if you change your mind after I've become attached to her, I will kill you myself. And there's no way in hell, I'm changing any diapers."

Eliot smiled, chuckling. "Deal, but I won't change my mind."

With only one final vote to cast, everyone turned to Nate. Nate stared at Eliot in silence for over two minutes. Finally, he nodded and stood.

"Alright then. Let's go steal a crib."


	2. First Boyfriend (Part 1)

"Uncle Nate! Uncle Nate!"

Nate looked up as a bundle of energy bounced its way over to the car. With a huge smile, he bent and snatched up his niece as she jumped into his arms. "Hiya there Kenzie girl."

Her little hands locked around his neck in a tight hug as he planted a loud kiss on her cheek.

"Ready to go, sweetheart?" He set her down and herded her into the car. "We gotta pick up your daddy and Parker on the way home."

Kenzie gave him a thumbs up and started rambling on about her day at school. "First, Miss Jennifer maded us say the Plague of Allowance. I can says it all, Uncle Nate. Wanna hear?"

Nate chuckled as Kenzie didn't wait for an answer and just started reciting the Pledge of Allegiance.

"I plague allowance to the flag of the Nited Steaks of a Miracle..."

Nate smiled as he listened, trying not to break into laughter as Kenzie continued.

"And to the um...to the public cus it stands, one nay son, under God, invisible, with um..." Kenzie paused, her tongue sticking out in deep concentration. After a moment, her face brightened and she said, "With litter bees and juices for all."

Nate fought back the laughter threatening to erupt and nodded his head in the mirror. "Very good."

Kenzie beamed and continued on with her story as if she had never stopped to recite the Pledge of Allegiance. "After, Miss Jennifer gived us math and I gotted to count beans. Beans is yucky, but its okay cus I only hadda count 'em, I didn't hadda eat 'em."

Secretly, Nate agreed with the girl, but there was no chance for him to say so as she continued to talk. "Then, I gotta drawed my family and I drawed you and Daddy and Mommy and Auntie Soph and Auntie Parker and Uncle Hardy. Then, Bobby becamed my boyfriend. Then, we ated lunch and Bobby gived me his jello and then you camed and gotted me."

The girl was talking so fast, Nate almost missed it. Almost.

"Boyfriend?" He asked. "You mean.. like a boy whose a friend?"

Kenzie shook her head. "Nope, like a boyfriend."

"Right... a friend who just happens to be a boy." Nate said.

Kenzie shook her head again. "No, like Uncle Hardy is Auntie Parker's boyfriend."

"Oh." Nate was shocked into silence at that. Kenzie was in Kindergarten for Pete's sake; just starting Kindergarten. She wasn't old enough to have a boyfriend! Any rebuttal was swept away as the car rolled to a stop and two bodies got in. Parker sat in back next to Kenzie and Eliot sat up front next to Nate.

As they got a bit further down the road, Nate looked over at Eliot. "I was having the most...interesting...conversation with your kid. Kenzie, tell your daddy what happened at school today."

Eliot listened as his daughter rattled off about how her day went. Like Nate, he smiled at the mispronunciation of about half the words in the Pledge of Allegiance and tried to contain his laughter at the thought of littering bees and juices for everyone. Again like Nate, he agreed that counting beans was a whole better than eating them. And just like Nate, he almost missed it. Almost.

"I'm sorry, what?" Eliot looked over his shoulder, letting his gaze land on his daughter. "A boyfriend? You mean ..a little boy whose a friend?"

Kenzie shook her head. "Nope, a boyfriend."

"Right... a friend who just happens to be a boy." Eliot said again.

Kenzie gave him the biggest smile she could, dimples and everything. "No, Daddy. A boyfriend...like Uncle Hardy and Aunty Parker."

"Way to go Junior Spark!" Parker exclaimed, high fiving the kid.

"Parker!" Eliot growled.

Parker looked up at him with innocent eyes. "What?"

"She's five years old. She does not have a boyfriend." Eliot said, before narrowing his gaze on Kenzie. "You do NOT have a boyfriend, Mackenzie Leanne."

Kenzie's face scrunched up in displeasure and her arms crossed in a fit. "I do to! And I'm keeping him! He giveded me his jello cup!"

Eliot abruptly turned around, growling under his breath. "I'll kill him."

"Eliot..." Nate cautioned.

"I know. I know." Eliot mumbled. "Don't kill the jello boy."

After a few moments of silence, Nate cleared his throat. "You must really like this boy to give up all that stuff, Kenzie."

Kenzie nodded. "I do." After a brief pause, she frowned. "What stuff?"

"Yeah, what stuff?" Parker asked, intrigued.

"Oh, well.. see there's rules to having a boyfriend." Nate said. "There's things you have to give up if you want a boyfriend before your 18..."

"35, Nate, 35." Eliot said quickly.

Nate met the hitters eyes, dancing with amusement. "Oh, that's right. It changed last year." He looked at Kenzie through the rear-view mirror. "There's things you have to give up if you want a boyfriend before your 35 years old."

Parker frowned at that. "What things?"

Kenzie was frowning right beside her. "Yeah, what things?"

"Well... the tooth fairy for one." Eliot said, getting in on the con now. "Little girls who have boyfriends don't get to have the tooth fairy come to visit them anymore."

Kenzie frowned harder, thinking that over. She was still losing her baby teeth and she liked it when the tooth fairy came to see her. The tooth fairy left a whole quarter for every tooth she put under her pillow! But still... she got free jello cups from Bobby the Boyfriend. Quarters...Jello...Quarters...Jello...that was an easy decision.

Kenzie gave a small shrug. "I don't need no quarters, Daddy. Uncle Hardy gived me them all the time and he aint a tooth fairy."

Eliot growled under his breath. "Dammit Hardison!"

Nate, seeing Eliot starting to lose it, kept the game up. "Don't forget about the Easter Bunny, Eliot. The Easter Bunny doesn't visit little girls who have boyfriends either."

Parker sucked in her bottom lip as she listened with growing interest.

"The Easter Bunny?" Kenzie's face fell for just a few brief moments, before it brightened slightly. "Auntie Parker gots en-a-nins all years long... she shares."

Nate glanced at Eliot, then back to his niece. "Can't trick or treat either. Only grown up girls have boyfriends and grown up girls don't trick or treat."

Kenzie's face fell even more. "None?"

"Nope." Eliot shook his head, hiding a smile as he glanced over at Nate. "We'll have to have Sophie take the princess dress back since Kenzie won't be needing it."

Kenzie's mouth opened in shock and tears sprang to her eyes. "Daddy!"

"That doesn't include parties, right?" Parker frowned. "Sophie is wearing a costume. So am I. We're going to a party and they'll have candy there. I'll bring some back and she can keep the costume to play dress up or something with her tiny ankle biter friends."

Kenzie looked at Parker, then to her daddy, then back to Parker, then back to her daddy. "Yeah, I could does that."

Eliot closed his eyes, silently cursing the thief. "I... I suppose you could, baby."

Kenzie's tears dried up and a smile lit up her face.

"I have to say, I'm very impressed Kenzie. Giving up the tooth fairy and the Easter Bunny is one thing, but to be able to give up Santa Clause..." Nate whistled. "I don't know that I could have done that at your age."

Kenzie's eyes widened and her mouth dropped open in shock. She couldn't even gather any words to express at how unfair that was. Kenzie scowled. It was all Bobby the Boyfriend's fault! First, she had to give up her quarters from the tooth fairy. Then, she had to give up her Easter basket. If those two weren't bad enough, she also had to give up trick or treating. And now, she had to give up Santa Clause! It just wasn't fair! Bobby the Boyfriend's jello cups weren't that good.

Eliot glanced back at his daughter and stifled a smile. He looked over at Nate, meeting the older man's gaze. "There is that 'Get out of a boyfriend' thing..."

Nate nodded, then shook his head. "But she probably wouldn't be interested in that."

Kenzie lifted her eyes at the mention of a "get out of a boyfriend" thing. "What gets outta boyfriend thing?"

Parker looked over at the two in the front seat. "Yeah, what get out of a boyfriend thing?"

"Well, it's nothing really. If the little girl decides that she can't give up all those things, or even just one of those things, then she makes a "Get out of a boyfriend" card and gives it to her father." Eliot said.

"Right and then to heal her heart, because breaking up with someone hurts..." Nate paused, glancing over at Eliot before going back to Kenzie. "He buys her her own jello cups."

Kenzie thought about that. "Wiggly jello or chocolate jello?"

Nate smiled. "Both."

Eliot joined in with a smile of his own as Kenzie sat back to think about it all.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxx

Nate's Loft...

Hardison looked up as Nate, Eliot, and Kenzie came into the room.

Kenzie ran over to him. "Hi, Uncle Hardy!"

"What's up, Shorty?" He answered back giving her a high five.

"Can I getted a paper?" She asked him. "I gotta make something."

"Sure thing, Shorty." Hardison gave her a few pieces of paper out of his printer and she snatched them up and skipped off upstairs to Nate's room. He looked over at Nate and Eliot, taking in their smirks, and raised a brow. "What's going on?"

"I'll tell you later." Nate said. "Have you heard from Sophie?"

Hardison nodded. "She's just finishing up shopping for the Halloween bash in a couple weeks. We're all supposed to meet her for a late lunch in about half an hour. Where's Parker?"

Nate looked around. "She was right behind us."

"It's Parker, Hardison." Eliot growled. "She's off being Parker."

Hardison rolled his eyes at the man. "Fine, you guys go meet Sophie. I'll go get Parker. We'll meet you there."

"Kenzie! We gotta go, girl. Grab your stuff." Eliot called out.

A few minutes later, Kenzie ran out and handed Eliot a card before skipping out the door after Nate. Eliot read the card and beamed as he tucked it into his pocket. On the front cover, it said "To Daddy" and had a pretty picture of a rainbow with the sun and clouds. Inside was a framed sentence with the words: "This is my get outta boyfriends card. I wants red wiggly jello and chocolate jello."


	3. First Boyfriend (Part 2)

CHAPTER 2

Nate, Sophie, and Eliot walked into Nate's loft. They'd waited for well over an hour for the rest of the team to show up, but neither had. They'd dropped Kenzie off downstairs with Cora, asking the bar owner to watch the kid until they made sure everything was okay upstairs.

"Hardison! Where the hell have you been, man? We waited for over an hour." Eliot snapped, seeing the hacker standing in front of the couch. "Where's Parker?"

Hardison slowly turned, almost as if in a daze. "Parker... I... I don't know."

"You don't know?" Nate asked, glancing around. "You always know where she is."

"Just trace her on that GPS thingy you got in her shoe." Eliot said.

Sophie glanced closely at the hacker; studied him. She could tell that there something else going on. She walked over to him, letting her hand brush against his arm. "Hardison? What's wrong?"

Hardison turned his shock filled eyes to her. "She broke up with me."

"What?" Immediately, Nate and Eliot turned their way.

"Why?" Nate asked.

"What did you do to her?" Eliot demanded. "I swear, Hardison, if you cheated on her..." He let the threat fade off knowing that Hardison would get what he meant.

"What? NO!" Hardison shook his head, his hands lifting in a self defense mode as he took a step back. "I didn't cheat on her! I would never cheat on her."

"Sophie touched Hardison's arm again, in a comforting and reassuring manner. "We know that, Hardison. So, what happened?"

Hardison shook his head, focusing only on Sophie. "I don't know. She came in her raving on about how I was forcing her to give things up."

"Have you been?" Sophie asked.

"Of course not." Hardison said. "Why would I want her to give something up?"

"Are you sure? Maybe there's a habit that you asked her to break? Or, something you told her not to say?" she asked.

"No, absolutely not. She wouldn't be Parker if I started plucking out all these little things like a feather from a chicken, Sophie. I want Parker as Parker." Hardison firmly said. "I always have."

Nate cleared his throat. "Hey Hardison, what things exactly?

"Huh?" Hardison glanced over at him distractedly. "I don't know, Nate. She just said things."

"But she must have listed off a few things, right?" Nate prodded. "Food? Music? Games? Jobs?"

"No, no, no, no. Look, she came in, said that she was willing to give a lot of things up for me, but that he wasn't one of them and I couldn't make her. That's all she said. That's it. Every single word." Hardison said. "I don't even know who 'he' is."

Eliot glanced at Nate, before eying Hardison. "Well, Parker's crazy, man. She probably won't remember she broke up with you tomorrow."

"Yeah, I guess. Listen, I'm just gonna go home." Hardison gathered his things. Right before the door, he stopped short and turned back. "Almost forgot, she left something on the table for you, Nate."

The instant Hardison left the loft, Sophie turned on the two remaining men and narrowed her eyes. "I'm taking Kenzie to the park. I don't know what you two did, but you better fix it."

Without waiting for a response, Sophie whirled around and stomped downstairs. Eliot and Nate watched her go and then turned to the envelope Parker had left on the table.

Eliot shook his head as Nate picked it up and looked inside it. "She couldn't possibly have..."

"Oh... I'm pretty sure she did." Nate said, holding out the envelope to him.

Eliot took the envelope addressed to Nate and peered inside. Inside the envelope was an old Monopoly "Get out of Jail Free" card. The word "jail" had been crossed off and "a boyfriend" written in its place. Behind it, was a small scrap of paper that said, "I don't like wiggly jello. I like chocolate jello."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxx

Parker's Warehouse

Parker didn't acknowledge the knock on the door or the sound of it opening and closing. She lay curled on her bed with Bunny safely tucked into the crook of her arm. Upon looking at her face, Eliot and Nate could tell that the girl had been crying. In this position, they were reminded of just how much of a child Parker really was. She still believed in things like the Easter Bunny and Santa Clause. At the time, they hadn't given it any thought, but now they realized that they should have.

"Parker?" Nate slowly approached from one side, Eliot from the other. "Can we talk? I think there might be a misunderstanding from what we said to Kenzie in the car."

Parker sniffled and slowly sat up, hugging Bunny closer. "No, I understood."

"I don't think you did, Parker." Eliot said. "That was for Kenzie, not you."

Parker shook her head, making a face. "You said it was for girls under 35. You both did. I'm under 35."

"Yes, you are, but it's different for you." Nate said.

"How?" Parker asked.

"You already have all your grown up teeth, so the toothfairy doesn't visit you anyway." Eliot said.

"And you said yourself that the Easter Bunny hasn't visited you since you were seven when he left Bunny in the closet for you." Nate said. "And, you've never gone trick-or-treating, so there's nothing for you to give up there either."

"Santa visits me. Every year. He never left me after all these years." Parker said sadly. "How could I just leave him like that?"

Nate and Eliot looked at each other. This was going to be harder to explain than they originally thought. Parker's connection to Santa Clause ran deep. He was the only person who had never left. When that's the only stability you've had in your life, it was impossible to give it up.

"Did you bring jello, Nate?" Parker asked, peering over the bed to see if he was holding a bag.

"No, I didn't." Nate said, holding up his empty hands.

Parker's face fell. "Oh. I understand."

Nate came closer, but didn't sit down. "I didn't bring any, because it wouldn't work."

Parker looked at him. "Why not? Because you aren't my real dad?"

"Because you don't know everything about the rules, Parker." Nate said. "We didn't mention everything to Kenzie because not everything applies to someone her age."

"What didn't you mention?" Parker asked curiously.

"The Permission Redemption Exception." Eliot supplied.

"The Permission Redemption Exception?" Parker repeated. "What's that?"

"It's when the boyfriend contacts the girls family and gets permission to be the boyfriend before asking her out." Nate said. "It's only for girls who are under 35, but over 18."

"I'm over 18." Parker looks hopeful for a second, then her hope crashes. "I don't have a family, though. Not a real one. Not a blood one."

"Blood doesn't mean family, Parker." Eliot said as he sat down on the bed beside her and tapped her leg. "We're your family. You're real family."

Parker looked up, back and forth between the two. "Really?"

"Of course." Eliot said.

"Did Hardison..." Parker let her voice trail off, leaving the obvious question unspoken.

Nate nodded. "He did. He came to all of us, Sophie included."

"He did?" Parker moved to kneel on her knees, Bunny pushed to the side as she smiled nervously.

Eliot nodded in agreement. It wasn't a lie. Hardison had approached each of them to see what they thought and make sure it would be okay with them since it would be altering the group dynamic. They'd all said yes, obviously. There was no reason for them not to. The two were a good fit with each other.

Parker jumped up excitedly. "That means... I have to go talk to Hardison!"

Before the two men could blink, Parker had given them an awkward squeeze resembling a hug and bounced out the door. Nate and Eliot looked at each other.

"Should we call and warn him?" Eliot asked.

"I'm sure Parker will explain in her own way." Nate responded. He looked once more to the door, then back at Eliot. "To the park?"

"To the park." Eliot nodded as the two walked to the door. "You do realize that if this doesn't work, Sophie's gonna kill us, right?"

"It's Hardison and it involves Parker." Nate said. "It'll work."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxx

The next day at the office...

Eliot and Nate stood in the kitchen, each one leaning against the counter on opposite sides.

"Looks like it worked." Eliot commented.

Nate nodded. "Told you it would."

They watched as Kenzie and Sophie had a tea party on the rug in front of the couch. To the left of them, in one of the chairs, sat Hardison. Parker was on his lap and both of them had a big smile on their face and a tea cup in their hand. Grabbing a tray of snacks, the two men took their seats next to Sophie and the entire family stopped work to join their favorite five year old for Jello cups and make believe tea.


End file.
